Instructor

Keith D. Powell, Ph.D.
Department of Psychology | Behavioral Sciences Building room 1022 D
Office hours: Mon 1-2 p.m. and Wed 2 - 3 p.m.
E-mail: kdp@uic.edu

Teaching Assistants

Greg Colflesh | colflesh@uic.edu

12121 DIS BD7 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM F 381 2BSB
12123 DIS BD8 12:00 PM - 12:50 PM F 219 2BSB

12090 DIS BD4 09:00 AM - 09:50 AM F 381 2BSB
12085 DIS BD5 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM F 381 2BSB

12119 DIS BD3 08:00 AM - 08:50 AM F 381 2BSB
12124 DIS BD9 01:00 PM - 01:50 PM F 319 2BSB

Ruscio, J. (2002). Clear thinking with psychology: Separting sense from nonsence. Pacific Grove, CA: Wadsworth.
ISBN 0-534-53659-x

I will post the chapters that you should read for each exam in the schedule below. I encourage you to read at least one chapter a week so you don't get behind. Occasionally I will ask you to read a specific chapter for discussion in your sections. In those situations, I will make a special announcement for the reading assignments.

Structure and Overview of the Course

The discipline of psychology occupies a peculiar niche in modern universities. Modern psychologists are concerned with basic humanistic issues (e.g., the nature of emotions, the mind, relationships, free will, and consciousness) that have traditionally been studied by philosophers, poets, and historians. However, unlike scholars in these other disciplines, modern psychologists employ the methods of the natural sciences (e.g., measurement, experimentation) in order to understand these phenomena. The objective of this course is to introduce you to scientific methods, explain why they are valuable, and illustrate how they can be used to understand psychological phenomena.

I will deliver lectures on Mondays and Wednesdays. I expect you to be in class on time, and, if you cannot make it to class for some reason, I strongly encourage you to obtain the lecture notes from one of your classmates as soon as possible. (Do not come to me or one of the TA’s for lecture notes.) There will also be weekly discussion sections, led by the TA’s, in which you will design studies, collect and analyze psychological data, and expand your critical thinking skills.

The Class Webpage

I will post lecture notes on the class web page after each lecture, usually by 3:00. I plan to post the notes on-line because I want you to spend your class time listening and thinking carefully about the issues we're discussing rather than worrying about copying everything correctly. If, however, class attendance begins to decline, I will discontinue web notes because I do not want people skipping lectures simply because they can download the notes at their leisure.

You should treat the class web page as your primary syllabus. I will be updating it on a regular basis and it will be your responsibility to keep up-to-date on any changes that are made. For example, the lecture-topical schedule listed below is preliminary and will change as a function of how quickly or slowly we are progressing though the course. Also, practice test questions, answers to exams you've taken, exam grades to date, etc. will be updated as necessary. If you do not have Internet access at home, please visit one of the many student computer facilities on campus on a regular basis.

There will be four exams over the course of the semester, plus the final exam. Thus, there will be five exams total. The first four exams will not be cumulative in the strict sense of the term, but the subject matter will build on itself, so mastering material for the second exam, for example, may require that you keep yourself refreshed on earlier material. The final exam, however, will be cumulative in the strict sense of the term; I will ask you about anything that has been covered in the course.

Of the five exams, only your four best grades will count. In other words, you can drop your worst exam score. Why do I allow this? I allow this because emergencies (e.g., death in the family, oversleeping on exam day, traffic problems) may occur at some point during the semester, and you might have to miss an exam. I do not give make-up exams under any circumstances; the fact that you can drop your lowest score (which could be a 0) covers all make-up exam situations. Please do not ask me about make up exams because I will simply refer you to the class webpage which explains my policy on this issue (see previous sentence). If you would like to document an absence due to a medical emergency, it is necessary that you bring me a medical billing statement; a simple note from a doctor will not suffice.

In light of this policy, your best strategy is to study hard for each exam, hope nothing bad happens, and then skip the final if you're happy with the grade you would receive based on the first 4 exams. Then, if something bad happens along the way and you have to miss an exam, you'll know that you cannot miss the others. Or, if you bomb exam 1, you'll know you can drop it, but you'll have to do well on the remaining 4 exams. If you oversleep for exam 1 and then a relative dies for exam 2, you might receive a sympathy card, but not a make-up test.

The exam schedule for the semester is posted on the class webpage. It will not be changed, so please determine as soon as possible whether your schedule will prohibit you from making it to certain exams. It might be wise for you to drop the class (or change to another section) if you can foresee possible problems in scheduling from day 1.

At least once a week in lecture (either on Mondays or Wednesdays), I will give you a five-minute pop quiz at the beginning of class. These quizzes will be administered at exactly 12:00 p.m. and will be collected at 12:05 p.m. I strongly encourage you to come to class on time; there will be no make-up pop quiz opportunities. These quizzes will not be difficult. My objective in administering these quizzes to encourage you to keep up with the readings and the lecture material so you don't have to cram at the last minute for the exams.

Of your four highest exam scores, they will be averaged, and that average will account for 60% of your grade. The remaining 40% of your grade will come from lab activities (20%) and weekly quizzes (20%). Attendance is required for the labs.

Note: If you need to know your discussion section grade at any point in the semester, please contact your TA.

Students with disabilities who require accommodations for access and participation in this course must be registered with the Office of Disability Services (ODS). Please contact ODS at 312/413-2183 or 312/413-0123.